COVID-19 - Florida Health Justice Stories

Floridians Impacted By COVID-19
Need Medicaid Expansion
COVID-19, the novel coronavirus that has reached pandemic proportions, presents a dire public health emergency. Florida faces this challenge with significant disadvantages. Our state has failed to expand Medicaid, leaving us with the country’s fourth-highest rate of uninsured (13%). At the same time, Florida has one of the highest proportions of residents 60 and older in the nation (over 25%) and many live at or near poverty.

In Miami-Dade County, a COVID-19 hotspot, one in five elders are below the federal poverty level. Further, thousands are on waitlists for home health services, without which they are acutely vulnerable to the present dangers of institutionalization. Additionally, two million state residents live in mixed immigrant families that may be afraid of accessing public healthcare because of new immigration rules. Florida Health Justice Project is advocating aggressively on behalf of those most at risk.
The Storytellers

Gigi
St. Johns, FL
Gigi lost her job and her health insurance due to COVID-19 as well as contracted the virus herself. Now suffering with the lingering effects of COVID-19, she cannot afford the medical care she desperately needs.
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Johana
Miami, FL
Johana, who has worked hard her whole life, lost her insurance due to the pandemic. She had to get tested for COVID-19 and now has a bill for over $500.

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Jeffery
Miami, FL
Jeffery Burney is combating fear with science in his quest to get his community vaccinated for COVID-19.

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Z.B.
North Miami, FL
Z.B. had been recently discharged from the hospital with COVID-19 when the bills started arriving. Altogether, she owes $30,000 in medical bills from the five days she spent tethered to an oxygen tank, struggling to breathe, as she was treated for COVID pneumonia.

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Michael
Orlando, FL
Before COVID-19 hit Central Florida, Michael Smith scraped together a living running his own small business. He doesn’t have health insurance but has medical needs, including asthma he manages on his own.

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Julie
Miami, FL
Health insurance benefits are a job perk Julie Verschoore enjoyed as a marketing account executive. But when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, her job and her health insurance ended.

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Edwin
Miami, FL
Edwin Rivera, age 24, knows he would probably die if he returned to his native Honduras but some days the struggle and worry his family endures in Miami has him considering the risk.

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Kelly
Tampa, FL
After a lifetime of security and serenity living in her own home, Kelly Percival’s life was jolted into crisis after an unfortunate accident left her hobbling and a global pandemic left her unemployed.

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Adriana
Miami, FL
Before COVID-19, Adriana, a 60-year-old resident of downtown Miami, had been working hard as a waitress--in spite of serious health problems.

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Share Your Story
Join the fight by letting your voice be heard!
Contact us if you or a family member need health care and are:
Impacted by Covid-19.
Struggling with injury or illness, including mental illness.
A low-income worker.
A parent of a minor child.
An uninsured Floridian between the ages of 50-64.
Sharing your story --in your words and your voice-- is part of the solution. Together we'll make the case that it's time for everyone to have affordable health care.
Contact Us
COVID-19 Resources
Policy Updates | Fact Sheets | Know Your Rights Handouts
COVID-19 Testing & Treatment Resources For Uninsured Florida Residents
Pregnant & On Medicaid During COVID-19?
The State Of COVID-19 In Florida And South Florida: An Early Look at Disparities in Outcomes
The Path Forward: Florida's 2020 Policy Blueprint
Appendix K: A Potential Opportunity for Expanding Home and Community Based Resources for Frail and Disabled Florida Seniors
Appendix K: Stakeholder Questionnaires
COVID-19 Policy Digest & Recommendations Federal and State Actions (March 18-April 10, 2020)
Florida Medicaid Recipients: Know Your Rights During COVID-19 Emergency
Florida Medicaid Applicants: Know Your Rights During COVID-19 Emergency
Solicitantes de Medicaid de Florida: Conozca Sus Derechos Durante la Emergencia de Covid-19
Destinatarios de Medicaid de Florida: Conozca Sus Derechos Durante la Emergencia de Covid-19
Summary of AHCA Policies | Read the Summary of AHCA Policies (updated 3/22) implementing 1135 Waiver
Healthcare Access by the Numbers: FL in the Time of COVID-19
Media | Press Release | Blog Posts
Op-ed: "Do Florida lawmakers know COVID-19 is a public health emergency? They're not acting like it"
Testing and Treatment Clinics | Informational press release on clinics throughout Florida providing testing and treatment
Press release connecting healthcare crisis and healthcare access injustices
Blog post: Florida Can Put Medicaid to Work Against the Coronavirus Now
Video: COVID-19: Health Care Resources for Low-Income Floridians
Video: Florida's Communities of Color and COVID-19
Video: Sick in Paradise: Stories from Florida's Coverage Gap
Video: Sick in Paradise Part 2 (Lives on the Line)
Video: Florida's Medicaid Expansion and COVID-19
Sign-On Letters
Health provider sign-on letter | Join in the open letter from medical providers, proposing public health measures and priorities in response to the novel coronavirus
Action Network: Sign the Petition | EVERY ACA exchange must reopen ACA enrollment to ensure everyone has access to healthcare amid the coronavirus pandemic
Other Helpful Resources
Florida Department of Health | Includes FAQ and cases tracker, updated daily
Kaiser Family Foundation | Coronavirus Resources
National Health Law Program | Coronavirus Resources
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Make sure you always receive the latest STORIES of Floridians
who need the benefit of expanded health care coverage.
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Your support will help us educate decision-makers, the media, and the public about the impact of health law and policy on individual Floridians and their families.
We are grateful to the following funders for support of the STORIES Project:

The Florida Health Justice Project, a nonprofit organization, recognizes that access to quality and affordable health care is a human right and engages in comprehensive advocacy to expand health care access and promote health equity for vulnerable Floridians.

A COPY OF THE OFFICIAL REGISTRATION AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DIVISION OF CONSUMER SERVICES BY CALLING TOLL FREE WITHIN THE STATE AT 1-800-435-7352 . IT CAN ALSO BE FOUND AT WWW.800HELPFLA.COM. REGISTRATION DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT, APPROVAL OR RECOMMENDATIONS BY THE STATE.

Floridians Impacted By COVID-19
Need Medicaid Expansion

The Storytellers

Gigi

St. Johns, FL

Johana

Miami, FL

Jeffery

Miami, FL

Z.B.

North Miami, FL

Michael

Orlando, FL

Julie

Miami, FL

Edwin

Miami, FL

Kelly

Tampa, FL

Adriana

Miami, FL

Share Your Story

COVID-19 Resources

Policy Updates | Fact Sheets | Know Your Rights Handouts

Media | Press Release | Blog Posts

Sign-On Letters

Other Helpful Resources

Follow Us On Twitter

Subscribe To STORIES

Make sure you always receive the latest STORIES of Floridians
who need the benefit of expanded health care coverage.

Support The STORIES Project

Your support will help us educate decision-makers, the media, and the public about the impact of health law and policy on individual Floridians and their families.

We are grateful to the following funders for support of the STORIES Project:

Floridians Impacted By COVID-19Need Medicaid Expansion

The Storytellers

St. Johns, FL

Miami, FL

Miami, FL

North Miami, FL

Orlando, FL

Miami, FL

Miami, FL

Tampa, FL

Miami, FL

Share Your Story

COVID-19 Resources

Policy Updates | Fact Sheets | Know Your Rights Handouts

Media | Press Release | Blog Posts

Sign-On Letters

Other Helpful Resources

Follow Us On Twitter

Subscribe To STORIES

Make sure you always receive the latest STORIES of Floridianswho need the benefit of expanded health care coverage.

Support The STORIES Project

Your support will help us educate decision-makers, the media, and the public about the impact of health law and policy on individual Floridians and their families.

We are grateful to the following funders for support of the STORIES Project:

Floridians Impacted By COVID-19
Need Medicaid Expansion

Make sure you always receive the latest STORIES of Floridians
who need the benefit of expanded health care coverage.